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First Post
29-04-2025
- Health
- First Post
How India's decision to cancel medical visas after Pahalgam is hurting Pakistanis
Today is the last day for Pakistan nationals who came to India on medical visas to leave. India cancelled Pakistani visas in the wake of the terror attack in Pahalgam that killed 26 people last week. However, the citizens of the neighbouring country are hoping that the Indian government will reconsider read more A woman cries before leaving for Pakistan, next to the Attari-Wagah border crossing, after India revoked visas issued to Pakistani citizens, near Amritsar, April 29, 2025. Reuters The future of medical tourism from Pakistan to India is uncertain. After the deadly terror attack in Pahalgam, India cancelled many visas issued to Pakistani nationals, including medical visas. As the deadline for Pakistanis who came to India on medical visas ends on Tuesday (April 29), several citizens of the neighbouring country have urged the Narendra Modi government to reconsider its decision. Earlier, Pakistan nationals who came to India on short-term visas had to exit as the deadline expired on Sunday (April 27). STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Let's take a closer look. Pakistanis on medical visas urge to stay back Pakistan nationals are forced to depart from India as the deadline for medical visa holders ends today. The Indian government suspended all visas for Pakistani nationals –– except long-term, diplomatic, and official visas –– in the wake of the Pahalgam massacre that claimed 26 lives in Jammu and Kashmir. Speaking to Pakistan's Geo News, a father from Sindh province's Hyderabad requested India to let him stay in the country until his two children's medical treatment. He said his kids, aged nine and seven, are suffering from a congenital heart condition and their life-saving surgery is set for this week. 'They have a heart condition, and their treatment was possible in New Delhi because of the advanced medical treatment here. But after the Pahalgam incident, we have been told to return to Pakistan immediately,' he said. The Pakistani father, who was not named by the news outlet, said that the police and the foreign office are pressuring them to leave India without delay. 'I appeal to the governments to allow the medical treatment of my children to be completed as we have spent around Rs 10 million on our travel, stay and their treatment,' he said. A Border Security Force (BSF) personnel checks the passport of Pakistani citizens, as they prepare to leave India after India revoked visas issued to Pakistani citizens, at the Attari-Wagah border crossing near Amritsar, April 27, 2025. Reuters It is a painful separation for many civilians on both sides of the border as they bid adieu to their relatives. India has closed the Integrated Check Post at Attari border in Punjab, while Pakistan has shut the Wagah border. The Attari-Wagah border is the sole land route between the two nations for trade and the movement of passengers. Samreen, a Pakistani national at the Attari border, told ANI she came to India on a 45-day visa in September. She got married here but has to return to her country as she could not secure a long-term visa. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD 'I came here in September with a 45-day visa. After that, I got married here. I have not got my long-term visa yet, and now suddenly I have been asked to leave the country. The terrorists should be questioned. What is our fault? Why are we being punished? The people who have relatives in the country should be allowed to stay,' Samreen said. As per officials, at least 537 Pakistani nationals, including nine diplomats and officials, have exited India through the Attari-Wagah border since April 24. A Pakistani national woman gets emotional while leaving for Pakistan as her son with Indian nationality was stopped by the authorities to go with her, at the Attari-Wagah border checkpost near Amritsar, April 29, 2025. PTI About 850 Indians, including 14 diplomats and officials, have returned from Pakistan through the international border crossing in Punjab. ALSO READ: 'Don't throw us out': How shutting Attari border has impacted India, Pakistan civilians Is this end of medical tourism from Pakistan? Medical tourism from Pakistan to India could take a hit post the Pahalgam terror attack. As per Newslaundry, India issued 463,725 visas for medical travel in 2024. Medical tourism has got a boost, with the country ranking as the 10th most attractive destination in the Medical Tourism Index 2020-21. However, medical visas issued to Pakistani nationals have been on the decline. India granted more than 1,600 such visas in 2016, but this figure fell to just above 200 in 2024, reported Times of India (TOI). STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD A 2016 report by Pakistan's The Express Tribune, citing 2013 estimates, stated that 15 per cent to 20 per cent of all foreign tourists coming to India every year were from Pakistan. India's high-quality treatment and cost-effectiveness of procedures compared to the West push Pakistanis to their neighbouring country for medical services. Dr Anupam Sibal from Apollo Hospitals in New Delhi told The Express Tribune at the time that patients from Pakistan come to India for certain life-saving treatments, including organ transplants. 'We witness a large number of cases of solid organ transplants, liver and combined liver-kidney transplants, at our hospitals. Patients for cancer care, neurosciences, gastroenterology and paediatrics and orthopaedics also use our facilities,' he said. Dr Mirza Ali Azhar, the then secretary general of Pakistan Medical Association (PMA), said Pakistani patients, especially children, also travel to India for congenital heart defects. 'The Indian city of Bangalore [now Bengaluru] has a big centre for treatment of children with heart defects and it attracts young patients from around the region,' he was quoted as saying by The Express Tribune. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD In 2017, Pakistan convicted Indian national Kulbhushan Jadhav as a spy for India. It refused to release him, sparking a diplomatic crisis. After this case, the medical visas issued to Pakistani nationals by India took a plunge. The Pulwama terror attack in 2019 further worsened relations between New Delhi and Islamabad. While 1,678 medical visas were issued to Pakistanis in 2016, only 1,228 such visas were issued between 2019 and 2024, as per TOI. Of these, 554 were granted in 2019, 97 in 2020, 96 in 2021, 145 in 2022, 111 in 2023 and 225 in 2024. Now, experts from the healthcare industry say the aftermath of the Pahalgam terror attack could mark the end for medical tourism from Pakistan to India, at least for the near future. 'Patients from Pakistan used to visit India mostly for advanced surgeries such as liver transplant and treatment of birth defects that aren't widely available in their country and would cost a lot in other developed nations such as the US or the UK. But in the last six to seven years, the numbers have reduced drastically and now after the Pahalgam incident it is unlikely to go up anytime soon,' an official of a medical travel assistance company told the newspaper. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD It remains to be seen how the current tensions between India and Pakistan pan out and how long civilians will bear the brunt. With inputs from agencies
India Today
29-04-2025
- Politics
- India Today
'Terrorists should be punished, not us': Tears at Pak border as families separate
Emotions ran high at the Wagah-Attari border in Punjab as the deadline for Pakistani citizens to leave India came to an end on April 27. Among those caught in the crossfire were a Pakistani woman who had to leave behind her husband and eight-year-old son and another who was pregnant and got married just six months per the latest data, 682 Pakistanis were sent back from the Attari border after their visas were revoked by India in the aftermath of the Pahalgam terror attack that left 26 tourists dead. The Home Ministry has directed all states to ensure the return of all Pakistani nationals. advertisementAt the Attari border, heartbreaking scenes played out as several Pakistani nationals shared their concerns with India Today and appealed to the government to reconsider their decision.'HOW WILL A CHILD STAY WITHOUT HIS MOTHER' Among them was Iram, a resident of Karachi who had been married for 10 years and was staying in Delhi with her Indian husband. The couple have an eight-year-old son. All hell broke loose when one day police showed up at their doorstep and asked her to leave."Families are devastated. This is against basic human rights. We are being forcefully evicted from India. I can't imagine how I would live in Pakistan without my husband and my son," Iram told India lamented that her Long Term Visa (LTV) application got cancelled during the Covid-19 pandemic and her passport application got rejected twice. "Getting Indian citizenship is not easy... The government must rethink its decision," she condemning the Pahalgam attack, Iram said the attackers should be punished, and not ordinary people. "I feel very sorry for those killed in Pahalgam, but many families are being finished like this too. Women and children are the most affected. The attackers should be punished, not us," she husband, Shahbaz, appealed to the government to understand their "pain". "How will a child stay without his mother? Should I go to work or take care of the child? What has the child done that he has to be separated from his mother," he said.'INDIA NOT SENDING A CORRECT MESSAGE'Another woman, Samreen, broke down as she recounted her ordeal, saying she got married in October last year and was pregnant. Samreen, who is from Karachi, said the move by India to send all Pakistani nationals back was not a correct message."It is very difficult for me to be separated from my husband. This shouldn't have happened. If the government thinks that Pakistan is behind it, then they should not allow anyone from Pakistan in Kashmir. Other states should have been spared," Samreen husband, Rizwan, an Indian, blamed the terrorists for their separation. "I want strict punishment for the terrorists as soon as possible. They should not be hanged but shot dead. They don't have any religion," Rizwan said.
NDTV
29-04-2025
- Politics
- NDTV
"What Is Our Fault?" Pakistanis Question As Medical Visa Deadline Ends
Attari (Punjab): The departure of Pakistani citizens from India through the Attari Border saw a significant rise on Tuesday, coinciding with the last day of validity for medical visas issued to Pakistani nationals as per the Union Government's decision in wake of the terror attack in Pahalgam. Several Pakistani nationals returning to Pakistan shared their concerns and appealed to the Indian government for reconsideration of the decision, particularly in cases involving families and long-term residents. Meanwhile, the validity of short-term visas for Pakistani nationals had already expired on Sunday, as per a statement by the Ministry of External Affairs. Samreen, a Pakistani national at the Attari Border, stated that she got married in India after coming here in September with a 45-day visa, but now she has to leave the country as she hasn't been issued her long-term visa. "I came here in September with a 45-day visa. After that, I got married here. I have not got my long-term visa yet, and now suddenly I have been asked to leave the country. The terrorists should be questioned. What is our fault? Why are we being punished? The people who have relatives in the country should be allowed to stay," Samreen said. Ira, another Pakistani national, said, "I got married 10 years ago in Delhi. My visa expired during COVID. I am a NORI visa holder, but I have been asked to leave the country because of the attack in Pahalgam. Whatever happened there is absolutely wrong, but we should not be punished for this." Krishan Kumar, who also returned to Pakistan, said, "I came to India on a tourist visa for 45 days and now we are going back. The government should take action on the Pahalgam terrorist attack. Both countries should stay together since half of the families are there and half are here. What happened in Pahalgam is not right." On Friday, the Indian government revoked all categories of visas issued to Pakistani citizens, except long-term, diplomatic, and official visas, with immediate effect from April 27, with medical visas valid till April 29. In a statement, the Ministry of External Affairs stated, "All existing valid visas issued by India to Pakistani nationals stand revoked with effect from 27 April 2025. Medical visas issued to Pakistani nationals will be valid only till 29 April 2025." Earlier on Sunday, Arun Pal, a protocol officer at the Attari Border, stated that 537 Pakistani nationals have left India through the Attari border over the past three days after the deadline for short-term visa holders ended. Speaking to ANI, Mr Pal stated that 850 Indian nationals have returned to India in the past three days. He added that on Sunday alone, 237 Pakistani nationals returned to their country, while 116 Indian nationals came back. The terror attack, which claimed 26 lives in Jammu and Kashmir's Pahalgam, was one of the deadliest attacks in the region since the 2019 Pulwama strike, which claimed the lives of 40 Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) jawans. (Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
Hindustan Times
29-04-2025
- Politics
- Hindustan Times
‘Why are we being punished?': Pakistani nationals' desperate plea to Indian govt as medical visa deadline ends
Several Pakistani nationals returning to their country have urged the Indian government to reconsider its decision to revoke all categories of visas issued to Pakistani citizens in the wake of a terrorist attack in Jammu and Kashmir's Pahalgam in which 26 people, most tourists, were killed. The departure of Pakistani nationals from India through the Attari Border saw a significant rise on Tuesday, coinciding with the last day of validity for medical visas issued to them as per the Union government's decision. The validity of short-term visas for Pakistani nationals had already expired on Sunday, the ministry of external affairs said. Samreen, a Pakistani national at the Attari Border, told news agency ANI that she got married in India after coming here in September with a 45-day visa, but now she has to leave the country as she hasn't been issued her long-term visa. "I came here in September with a 45-day visa. After that, I got married here. I have not got my long-term visa yet, and now suddenly I have been asked to leave the country. The terrorists should be questioned. What is our fault? Why are we being punished? The people who have relatives in the country should be allowed to stay," Samreen said. Ira, another Pakistani national, said, "I married 10 years ago in Delhi. My visa expired during Covid-19. I am a NORI (No Obligation to Return to India) visa holder, but I have been asked to leave the country because of the attack in Pahalgam. Whatever happened there is absolutely wrong, but we should not be punished for this." Krishan Kumar, who also returned to Pakistan, told ANI, 'I came to India on a tourist visa for 45 days, and now we are going back. The government should take action on the Pahalgam terrorist attack. Both countries should stay together since half of the families are there and half are here. What happened in Pahalgam is not right.' Last week, the Indian government revoked all categories of visas issued to Pakistani citizens, except long-term, diplomatic, and official visas, with immediate effect from April 27, with medical visas valid till April 29. 'All existing valid visas issued by India to Pakistani nationals stand revoked with effect from 27 April 2025. Medical visas issued to Pakistani nationals will be valid only till 29 April 2025,' The ministry of external affairs said in a statement. Uttar Pradesh has become the first state where 100 per cent of Pakistani citizens have been sent back, with chief minister Yogi Adityanath himself monitoring the return of Pakistani citizens to their country. Currently, a Pakistani citizen is living in the state will be sent to his country on Wednesday, ANI reported. The police departments and intelligence agencies are keeping a constant watch on the Pakistani citizen.
